Andrew Bolt
Andrew’s column summarises the disastrous position Gillard finds herself in after her “carbon tax lie”. But I particularly liked the Seven Steps for Destroying Credibility:
STEP ONE: pretend you haven’t broken your word.
In Gillard’s initial announcement she did not even mention she’d ditched her promise.
Later, as public anger started to build, she pretended she was actually honouring it: “Before the last election I consistently said we needed to price carbon . . . What are we doing? We’re pricing carbon.”
STEP TWO: use lying language.
Gillard still calls her tax a “price on carbon” when it’s no such thing. She says “price” to avoid using the nasty “tax” word, and says “carbon” to make you think it’s imposed on sooty black stuff and not carbon dioxide.
STEP THREE: pretend your tax will make us richer, not poorer.
Gillard first presented her tax as the kind of invention that made computer pioneer Bill Gates a multi-billionaire.
“Bill Gates understood the need to be in on the change. The same is true now. This is the time to be pricing carbon.”
STEP FOUR: smear those who disagree.
Under attack in Parliament over her lie, Gillard resorted to abuse, accusing the Opposition of “race-baiting” and later warning it could even inspire dangerous extremists.
STEP FIVE: deny your tax is a tax.
Gillard at first did admit her “carbon price” was a tax, but by last Sunday Swan was so rattled that he pretended it wasn’t: “But it doesn’t operate like a traditional tax . . . It is not the case that the Government is going to take the carbon price out of your pay packet.”
Which must mean the goods and services tax isn’t a real tax, either, since it’s just a tax on everything you buy, just like this carbon dioxide tax.
STEP SIX: deny your tax is going to hurt like you once said.At first Gillard conceded her tax would hurt (by making coal-fired electricity and petrol more expensive).
“It has price impacts. It’s meant to. That’s the whole point.”
Even two weeks ago, Climate Change Minister Greg Combet suggested ways to avoid this pain. “The main way to do that is by saving energy, to turn things off at the wall. Maybe think about how often you use the airconditioner. Using a cheaper-to-run hot water system.”
But now? With this tax turning into a debacle, Combet is denouncing what he himself once confessed:
ABC interviewer: Tony Abbott is . . . pointing out the carbon tax in his words would transform Australia’s way of life by making it harder for Australians to drive or turn on the airconditioner.
Combet: . . . What garbage . . . I mean, this guy, he really is nothing but a mobile scare campaign.
STEP SEVEN: don’t ever admit your tax won’t do a thing to stop global warming.
Here’s Swan with Oakes.
Oakes: I’m getting this question from a lot of people . . . ‘Tell me just how much the temperature is going to drop by if this stupid tax comes into effect?’
Swan: Well, Laurie, this is a long-term problem, and the longer we delay . . .
And blah blah. Honest answer? Zero.
Australian Climate Madness 
Combet is the “fixer” eh?
As much as Combet is a smart guy, his “fixing” on this is NOT working. It’s making it worse.
One more interesting development. I just posted the link over at Jo Nova’s site.
At the entrance to the rat hole:-
A mistake huh, even though he was standing with the rainbow coalition when they announced it.
He also says this:-
Productive debate – yeah right.
What’s he up to?
I have already read comments speculating on Windsor being Gillards political “fall guy”
Hmmm, I need another box of pop corn.
Sorry, the link would have been helpful.
Here at ABC:-
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/09/3158764.htm
“What’s he up to?”
Looks to me like he can’t handle the heat – always has that expression that looks like he is carrying the weight of the world on his back.
In fact, watching him makes me think this is all some surreal remake of the Wizard of Oz — we’ve got the three independents: Scarecrow (“What would you do if you had a brain?”), Tin Woodsman and now the Cowardly Lion — and all the while Dorothy and Toto are in Kansas, saying “There’s no place like home!”
Yes, I’d have to agree, after reading today’s political developments I think Windsor is getting nervous and is shuffling his feet. He’s close to the rat hole and it wouldn’t take much for him to scuttle away up it.
The theory of Windsor being a fall guy (which did have some merit a few days back) necessitates some well thought out stratagem, something this government has proven it’s incapable of.
“Never attribute to conspracy that which is adequately explained by incompetence.” – Anon.
LD if Combet is a smart guy he keeps it well hid.:-)
Must…resist…urge…..to…. think independently comrade.
So Swan still can’t answer the question about how much this tax is going to reduce temperatures by. Like a true shoddy salesman he’s all about selling a product that he has no idea about what it does, or whether it’ll be any good for anyone.
Kudos to Oakes for asking the question. It needs to be asked more, and the expectation of more specific answer driven home.
..and as long as such a question is asked, Labor are deluding themselves over how “easy” to win a debate will be:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/climate/julia-gillard-told-carbon-tax-debate-will-be-easy-to-win-once-the-public-is-informed/story-e6frg6xf-1226018271996
Absolutely. More re-enforcement of their delusional groupthink from Cameron.
It beggars belief.
Hitler was the same in the bunker, still thinking the Nazi’s could win right up until a few hours before he pulled the trigger.
Don’t get your hopes up.
These imbeciles wouldn’t know which end the bullet came out of.
Australians should realize that we are dealing here with ultra leftist movement of professional politicians who never done anything useful in their life. Just take a bit effort and google Swans, Gillards and Oakeshotts background. These all are people who at early stage decided to live their lifes as parasites at Australian taxpayer’s costs.
If that was not bad enough they are now devising grand useless schemes such as already obsolete NBN and implement more and more taxes. This is totally in line with the Marxists Leninist doctrine which declares that the middle class must be destroyed so that the brainless masses can rule. It is called Dictatorship of Proletariat. Juliar is exactly doing that with help of brain dead nouveau rich Tony Windsdor and his bearded mini-me Oakeshott. Greens at least make no secret of their ideal to burry Australia six feet deep and dance on our graves.
It is time for all of decent people to rise and close down this self serving Labor circus.
Simon, you do a great job with your site and I look forward to your updates.
My view from Canada. Australia (and Canada too) need more Journalist like Andrew Bolt. He is a straight shooter and nails the Lying Cheating Ecotards every time.
I wonder in their reflective moments do Gillard and co ever think.
When you are in a hole stop digging.
Not for one moment. Their fundamental problem – as typified by the likes of Rudd, Wong and Combet – is that they really believe they are M-U-C-H smarter than all the rest of us. (Except for Swan, of course, who is painfully aware of the fact that he couldn’t negotiate a revolving door under his own steam.) It comes across very clearly in the arrogant way that they talk down to people whenever they are put in front of a TV camera. Gillard especially – she speaks to the camera as if talking to a class of retarded kindergarten kids. They think we are a bunch of half-wits, and that they need to “save” us. Stop digging? “Hell – we haven’t even started yet!”
Consequently, it would never enter their collective consciousness that they are wrong – and therefore should stop digging. They seem to truly believe that they are on a mission from God on this one – and are now completely surrounded by even more zealous Kool-Aid drinkers (Greens, Treasury, Department of Climate Change, etc). Who is ever going to provide them with a contrary view? Talk about a positive feedback loop.
THAT….is one of the main reasons I can’t stand listening to her, that, next to the Kath (of Kath and Kim fame) speaking voice of course.
According to the Qld Mental Health Act:
What is mental illness
(1) Mental illness is a condition characterised by a clinically
significant disturbance of thought, mood, perception or
memory.
……….Julia Gillard maybe? But I am not a Doctor!
Under the Act if a person is mentally ill and is a danger to themselves or others they can be regulated.
What do you think?
Thanks Loaded Dog.I was afraid to add that bit.
Andrew is very good at selective quotations : so here are few more from his reliable source John R. Christy
“it is scientifically inconceivable that after changing forests into cities, turning millions of acres into irrigated farmland, putting massive quantities of soot and dust into the air, and putting extra greenhouse gases into the air, that the natural course of climate has not changed in some way”
“As far as the AGU, I thought that was a fine statement because it did not put forth a magnitude of the warming. We just said that human effects have a warming influence, and that’s certainly true.”
“While he now acknowledges that global warming is real and the human contribution is significant, Christy has been a long-time skeptic who previously argued that satellite climate data do not show a trend toward global warming, and even show cooling in some areas. His findings have been widely disputed. Christy now asserts that global warming will have beneficial effects on the planet and that increased CO2 emissions from human activities are a net positive.”
If you’d actually provided a link to the sources of those comments (or even a genuine email address) I may have been able to respond. In any case I agree with the first and the second. The third sounds like it comes from a warmist news source.
What gets me is there seems to be precious little in the way of a mechanism for sacking Gillard for committing this most egregious of sins – lying to win an election and breaking a clearly-voiced promise. This sort of behaviour has to stop, otherwise no politician will ever be accountable.
The Governor-General should be persuaded to dissolve this government. Heck, what does it take in terms of sheer hoodwinking and duplicity before a Prime Minister loses the right to lead?
How do we petition the G-G to make this happen?
What Andrew Bolt said about Tony Abbotts position with regard to the climate change action he is taking was disgraceful.
“Andrew Bolt, you have no ability to explain your position if the spotlight is put on you and you know it!!”